Four Years Later, Teru Mikami's Office, Okibashi Group Building

Teru stared at the unmarked manila envelope on his clean and perfectly straight desk. The brownish orange envelope sat on the dark green blotter like a beacon of hope filling his vision and his mind. This was what he had been waiting for since receiving the call. The heavens had opened and smiled upon him because he had been recognized by his god. He had been so euphoric upon receiving the call he thought he had died and gone to heaven already. He still remembers how his heart beat faster with fear and elation upon hearing that odd, electronic sounding voice. There had never been a sweeter sound on this earth.

"Is this Teru Mikami?" the robotic voice inquired.

Teru almost hung up thinking it was a crank caller who just wanted to deliver another threat against his life. He had grown accustomed to receiving those from family members or lovers of the criminals he put behind bars.

"This is Kira," the voice had gone on to say just before his finger pressed the red end button.

"God?" he asked to receive and affirmative response.

"Yes, Teru, it is I, your god."

Kira had heard his pleas and responded. Teru had been given the gift of Kira's awesome power to help him. The blessing was sitting right in front of him on his desk. It had become his responsibility to assist the powerful god with ridding the world of unsavory degenerates and offenders of humanity. He could kill just like Kira; all he had to do was wait for the directives from his god. It was the most wonderful thing to happen to him – ever.

...

Adila had just completed setting the table when Teru arrived home. They had been living together for three years in her company bought house. She was still stubbornly refusing his marriage proposals every time he asked. It had been at least six months since the last request so it should be coming up again, although she doubted it would because something had changed in him. He had been acting strangely ever since that detestable Kira's Kingdom program began to air on Sakura TV. He had even gone to be a part of the studio audience a few times. She had less than politely declined when he asked her to come with him instead choosing to stay home. She knew who Kira really was and wanted nothing to do with him. It angered her that Teru would not listen to her pleas to not be a part of the Kira madness but he was too far entrenched into it. He was hooked by the idea of Kira and what he stood for just like so many other people in the cultish following that had developed around the merciless killer. She had the distinct feeling she had been replaced by Kira as the most important person in Teru's life.

Adila was surprised and happy with the passionate kiss he lavished upon her. She tried to pull away from him only to be held tightly when he picked her up and set her down on the table.

"Teru!" she cried out, shoving his hands away when he pushed up her skirt.

"Oh, come on, Adila," he begged, covering her mouth with his to silence her objections.

Adila moaned helplessly into the ravishing kiss, giving in to him as he pushed her skirt up to her hips. She shrieked when he snatched her panties off, easily breaking the flimsy pieces of elastic and delicate lace. He had been shockingly aggressive as of late using sex to demonstrate his dominance, whether real or perceived, over her. She liked the authority he showed in bed because it was always a pleasurable experience for her. Crying out his name when he thrust into her, she was sure this time would be no different. She held onto him, looking at his handsome face as he closed his eyes tightly and made love to her with an uncompromising, almost violent, vigor. Who was he thinking about? A disturbing image formed in her head when she thought of the conceited and vicious Light Yagami. She pictured Teru pushing into him with the enraptured delight that was displayed on his face at this moment. She had to switch her mind to other thoughts before she vomited. Her erotic mood was dead, exterminated with a thought of that bastard who had slain L and countless others. And what a ghastly thought it had been.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" he panted when he was done.

Adila pushed him away, walking to the kitchen. "Nothing. I'll finish getting dinner ready."

"Great! I'm starving. Can you bring it to me in the living room? Kira's Kingdom is about to start," he informed her, hearing a loud crash seconds later. He dashed to the kitchen, seeing the casserole dish and their dinner on the floor.

"Oh, sorry. I guess you'll have to find something else to eat," she said, trying but failing miserably to sound apologetic.

"Are you all right?" he asked, studying her pale face that was plastered with a troubled expression.

"Um, not really. I'm feeling sick. I'm going to the pharmacy for a few things," she told him, moving past him to get her coat and purse.

"If you can't find me when you get back I'll be in my study. I received a very important document today that I have to go over immediately," he said, following her to the door.

Teru was not exactly lying. There was just no need to tell her that he had received the Death Note promised to him and had been appointed by Kira to assist with his important work. That was between him and his god only. He kissed her on the cheek before she left only to remind her she belonged to him. He was not worried about eating. Kira was the only thing he needed in this world.

...

Adila found herself on Sake Row, searching for the specific tent that had brought her so much comfort and alcohol through the years. She had no intention of going to the pharmacy. It had been her excuse to get out of the house. Heading to her usual table, Mr. Fushima, the owner, was at her table with her sake before her butt hit the chair. She smiled and bowed to the man who had the kindest smile she had ever seen. He was so polite and always thoughtful whenever she showed up. Her phone buzzed and she ignored it. Teru could go to hell. With a wry grin on her lips, she thought to herself he could follow his god, Kira, straight there. Her phone vibrated against her side again as she gulped down the warm sake on the freezing cold night in late November. When she could no longer ignore the phone, she snatched it out of her pocket to turn it off. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw unknown on the caller ID. Could it possibly be the one man who blocked his number when he called?

"Hello," she mumbled.

"Adila," Shuichi replied.

Adila felt as if a sledgehammer had slammed into her belly. Feeling breathless and light headed, she closed her eyes to make the world stop spinning. It was him. How did he always know when she needed him most? It was uncanny and almost terrifying how he always showed up in her life when she needed a hero the most.

"I need to see you," he said, sounding as if he were whispering to keep his voice from being heard by other people in the room.

"Yeah. I was just thinking the same thing," she sniffed, wiping away the tears that froze on her cheeks from the icy winter wind blowing across them. "I'm at our place. Come see me."

...

Adila looked up and could not believe what she saw. Shuichi had gotten rid of his signature afro for a super short style that looked messy because of the insane amount of curl in his hair. He had a beard and moustache trimmed in a very flattering van dyke style. She had always thought he was handsome but he had become absolutely sexy to her with the passage of time and the change in his style. She had always found him irresistible, and her body was responding on a physical level to that magnetic pull he always exerted on her.

"Oh, my god, you're gorgeous," he gasped, speaking the words she was unable to voice. His fingers ran through her honey colored hair that was cut in an easy to take care of short style. He had never cared much for short hair but he liked it on her. There was still plenty to clutch should he have the opportunity to make love to her.

"Shuichi," she murmured wanting to embrace him but unable to move.

"I had to see you. I happened to be away from headquarters and thought I would take a chance on calling you," he explained, pulling a chair close to her before sitting down. "I've been to see someone to tell him about Light. His name is Near. He's like L. I'm so sorry I did not believe L sooner. I could have prevented his death if I had."

"Don't do that," she whispered, clutching her hand. "Don't hurt yourself like that. I believe Light would have killed him no matter what."

Adila experienced a flood of emotions she could not quite comprehend. She was elated yet sorrowful to see Shuichi. His admission that he believed L after all this time made her feel relieved and angry all at once. She wanted to cry again but there were too many conflicting emotions to allow it. Then there was Teru. That crazy bastard. Her eyes closed as if to keep the contents of her stomach down when nausea rolled over her like a tidal wave.

"Adila? What is it? Say something. Please," Shuichi implored her, taking both of her icy hands in his. He pulled them to his mouth, blowing on them to help warm them up.

Adila was thankful for the warmth he was imparting to her, feeling it soaking into her frozen body. "Shuichi, I've made a terrible mistake."

"What do you mean?" he asked, squeezing her hands like the apprehension squeezing his heart.

"I went back to Teru." She opened her eyes, staring at the man holding her hands who seemed unfazed by her admission.

"You didn't marry him did you?" he inquired, the anxiety making his voice an octave too high.

"Oh, hell, no. I screwed up but I didn't lose my mind completely. Speaking of marriage, what's the status of yours?" She raised her hand with two fingers up to relay to Mr. Fushima to bring them two tokkuris full of sake.

"It's over. I've been divorced for a year. I had taken some time off for a while before L died. I was afraid I was beginning to lose my mind. We found the Death Note and saw the Shinigami and…"

"Wait, what?" she inquired, not sure he had not experienced a fracture in his psyche.

Adila sat in stunned silence as he explained to her what a Death Note and a Shinigami are. The Death Note is a killer notebook owned by the Shinigami or death god. Anyone whose name is written down in the notebook dies of a heart attack in the forty seconds. Her head began to ache as he continued to explain the rest of the rules of the Death Note, getting into more specific details. She had to stop him since the information had become too much to process.

"Stop, please! I can't hear anymore. Have you been to a psychologist?" she asked, sincerely concerned for his mental health. Between the pressure and stress of the Kira case and his divorce, he had obviously been separated from his sanity at some point.

"I'm looking at one right now," he responded smartly, giving her a charming smile that soothed her nerves.

"Haha, don't be so damn cute," she retorted, wanting to be angry with him but unable to from the cocky grin on his face.

"Anyway, during my few months off we tried. We tried really hard, but it just didn't work. She said that she had enough and did not want to be a cop's wife anymore. She filed for divorce and I went back to the case. It was all pretty simple and relatively easy. I hope I can see my children again someday," He stated with a heart wrenching sorrow in his voice.

"Children?" she queried, sucking down another cup of sake.

"I have a daughter and a son. She had gotten pregnant when I could still go home during the case before. She was pregnant while I was confined with L. I didn't know until I went home. She had not wanted me to know," he told her, avoiding her profound gaze.

"Oh." She was tempted to drink out of the tokkuri but poured and drank three cups of sake in rapid succession to empty the bottle.

"How are things with Teru?" he asked, receiving the loud barking laugh of the stinking drunk and emotionally wounded in return.

"I've been replaced," she declared in a slurred voice, elaborating when he stared at her blankly. "I am no longer his goddess. I have been replaced with a god. The god of a new world. Kira."

Shuichi blanched physically at the mention of Kira. The thought of Kira made him ill at ease since he had finally admitted the true identity of the killer who had become an icon to a generation. He was not necessarily afraid for his life, otherwise he would have never have went to Near. However, he would prefer not to die if at all possible. He had given up hope on everything until he came to the conclusion through evidence and his own observations that Light was Kira. Knowing that had given him a reason to continue to the struggle, to strive for something. If a murderous beast could change the world, so could the one who wanted to bring him to justice. Therefore he had contacted Near and pledged to help him whenever possible to expose Light as Kira.

Adila looked at her watch. Sobering up was not a problem when she saw that two hours had passed since she had left the house. Jumping to her feet, she grabbed her purse. With a short, strong embrace coupled with a brief kiss, she bid Shuichi good-bye. She took some small comfort in the fact that he promised to contact her again soon. The whole way home she struggled to think of excuse for her long absence.

Upon arriving home, Adila found Teru in his study just like he had told her. Uneasiness made her stomach clench when she tried the knob on the door and it would not turn. He never locked his study door. Pressing her ear to the door she could hear him chuckling to himself while whispering something over and over like a mantra. Straining to hear, she pressed harder against the door.

"Delete, delete, delete, delete," Teru chanted intermingled with the occasional maniacal titter.

What was he doing in there? Adila could hear the scratch of pen on paper but her muddled mind did not make the connection between the sound and the lethal notebook Shuichi had told her about.